Denzel Washington tops an all-star cast that
includes Meryl Streep and John Voight this summer, in the
remake of the 1962 psychological thriller, "The Manchurian
Candidate." Denzel plays a career soldier who uncovers
a conspiracy of mind-controlled assassins, and when we talked
to him, he told us what's in his head that makes him such
a special actor.

His Oscar win and countless box office hits
prove it, but just how is Denzel so good at what he does?
"I'm still excited by the process," a modest Washington
responded.

And he revealedl the secret behind creating
his big screen, tough-guy persona: "Doing a film allows
you to tap into certain areas of your life. It may be a small
thing, it could have been a time in your life when you were
nine and wanted to get back at somebody. Had I been bigger,
I would have, you know, thought about 'I'd hang him from the
building by his ears' or something."

That toughness was certainly on display in Denzel's recent
release, "Man on Fire," as well as in his 2001 Oscar-winning
turn as a dirty cop in "Training Day." But is he
really that tough in real life? "Well, I haven't cut
anybody's fingers off in my own life," laughed Denzel.

And that's just the kind of intensity and good humor that
will always make Denzel a "Candidate" for Oscar
gold.